Prematurity — A Window of Opportunity?

Infants born with evidence of restricted fetal growth — those who are small for gestational age — appear to be at increased risk for metabolic disorders (type 2 diabetes mellitus and dyslipidemia), cardiovascular disease (hypertension and coronary heart disease), and even psychiatric disorders later in life.1,2 Proposed initially by Dr. David Barker and colleagues on the basis of careful epidemiologic studies, these observations have been replicated with variable strength in humans, have been duplicated in some animal models, have spawned an extensive literature, and have provided theories for the developmental origins of some of the most important common chronic . . .